WESTERN EUROPE
October 2008
"Setting Priorities in Energy Innovation Policy: Lessons for the UK"
Discussion Paper
By Jim Watson
This paper analyzes the role of governments in supporting a transition towards more sustainable, low carbon societies, drawing on experience from Europe, the USA and Japan. The paper concludes with five implications for energy innovation policy that are aimed at UK policy, but are also relevant to other countries.
2008
"Corporate Policy Preferences in the EU and the US: Emissions Trading as the Climate Compromise?"
Journal Article, Carbon and Climate Law Review, issue 2/2008
By Jonas Meckling, Research Fellow, Harvard Project on International Climate Agreements
Since the agreement of the Kyoto Protocol, business in the EU and the US has been split over the course of climate policy. This article reviews the regulatory preferences of major business associations on both sides of the Atlantic, and assesses whether the transatlantic gap on corporate positioning on climate change is actually narrowing and what the compromise solution might be.
November 2001
Voluntary, Collaborative, and Information-Based Policies: Lessons and Next Steps for Environmental and Energy Policy in the United States and Europe
Discussion Paper
Over the past decade, the United States and many European countries have developed new approaches to environmental policy that are voluntary, collaborative and information-based. These programs are attempts to engage industry in significant environmental improvements through dialogue, consensus-building and voluntary action rather than the imperatives of direct regulation or the incentives of market-based approaches. This workshop examined the effectiveness of these innovative policies, focusing particularly on how these approaches can provide opportunities and incentives for private-sector leadership in environmental protection, and whether they can be effective in stimulating beyond compliance behavior and the development and diffusion of environmentally superior technologies. The workshop was organized into five panels: voluntary approaches, industry sector collaboration, collaborative approaches for technology development, information disclosure policy, and environmental management systems.
October 1992
International Comparisons of Environmental Hazards: Development and Evaluation of a Method for Linking Environmental Data with the Strategic Debate Management Priorities for Risk Management
Discussion Paper
By Vicki Norberg-Bohm and William Clark, Harvey Brooks Professor of International Science, Public Policy, and Human Development; Co-director, Sustainability Science Program; Faculty Chair, ENRP;
This paper describes and evaluates a method for comparing environmental hazards within and between countries. The method is intended for use by international institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and governments that are involved in setting national environmental agendas or developing environmental programs that require international coordination. The core of the method is a common set of indicators that can be used to characterize any environmental problem. The indicators are designed to reflect both causes and consequences of environmental problems, and to pose realistic demands on available data. We show that by analyzing indicator data in various ways, the method can help to identify sets of "similar" hazards, to flag unusual or outlier hazards that might otherwise be ignored, to show which countries have common environmental problems, and to assign management priorities among hazards. We recognize the central role of values in structuring such analyses. Because the method addresses the value question directly, it can be used to illuminate the implications of preferences that (for example) emphasize present as opposed to future impacts, health as opposed to ecosystem effects, or pollution emissions as opposed to their consequences. Application of the method is demonstrated and evaluated through country studies of India, Kenya, the Netherlands, and the United States.
October 2008
"Setting Priorities in Energy Innovation Policy: Lessons for the UK"
Discussion Paper
By Jim Watson
This paper analyzes the role of governments in supporting a transition towards more sustainable, low carbon societies, drawing on experience from Europe, the USA and Japan. The paper concludes with five implications for energy innovation policy that are aimed at UK policy, but are also relevant to other countries.
2008
"Corporate Policy Preferences in the EU and the US: Emissions Trading as the Climate Compromise?"
Journal Article, Carbon and Climate Law Review, issue 2/2008
By Jonas Meckling, Research Fellow, Harvard Project on International Climate Agreements
Since the agreement of the Kyoto Protocol, business in the EU and the US has been split over the course of climate policy. This article reviews the regulatory preferences of major business associations on both sides of the Atlantic, and assesses whether the transatlantic gap on corporate positioning on climate change is actually narrowing and what the compromise solution might be.
July 29, 2008
New Report from Harvard Kennedy School Researchers Calls for Changes to Biofuels Incentives
News
By Henry Lee, Director, Environment and Natural Resources Program, William Clark, Harvey Brooks Professor of International Science, Public Policy, and Human Development; Co-director, Sustainability Science Program; Faculty Chair, ENRP; and Charan Devereaux
Despite pressure from biofuel critics, governments should avoid simplistic and precipitous changes in course such as rollback or moratoria on existing biofuels mandates or incentives, according to a new report from three Harvard Kennedy School researchers. Instead, the researchers urge governments to initiate an orderly, innovation-enhancing transition towards incentives targeted on multi-dimensional goals for biofuels development.
AP Images
December 18, 2007
Bali Climate Change Conference: Key Takeaways
Summary Report
By Robert N. Stavins, Albert Pratt Professor of Business and Government; Member of the Board; Director, Harvard Project on International Climate Agreements and Joseph Aldy, Former Co-Director, Harvard Project on International Climate Agreements
The Bali climate change conference was a qualified success. Before we went to Bali, we observed that it will be good news if there’s no bad news coming out of the negotiations. This was achieved, and then some.
April, 2005
Dawning of a New Era: The LNG Story
Discussion Paper
By Henry Lee, Director, Environment and Natural Resources Program
November 2001
Voluntary, Collaborative, and Information-Based Policies: Lessons and Next Steps for Environmental and Energy Policy in the United States and Europe
Discussion Paper
Over the past decade, the United States and many European countries have developed new approaches to environmental policy that are voluntary, collaborative and information-based. These programs are attempts to engage industry in significant environmental improvements through dialogue, consensus-building and voluntary action rather than the imperatives of direct regulation or the incentives of market-based approaches. This workshop examined the effectiveness of these innovative policies, focusing particularly on how these approaches can provide opportunities and incentives for private-sector leadership in environmental protection, and whether they can be effective in stimulating beyond compliance behavior and the development and diffusion of environmentally superior technologies. The workshop was organized into five panels: voluntary approaches, industry sector collaboration, collaborative approaches for technology development, information disclosure policy, and environmental management systems.
